Driver Surcharge

A “Driver Surcharge” is an additional charge applied to your auto liability and physical damage premium based on the driving records of all employee and long-term leased drivers operating under your authority.

A “Driver Surcharge” is an additional charge applied to your auto liability and physical damage premium based on the driving records of all employee and long-term leased drivers operating under your authority.

At Eastern Atlantic, we believe experienced and safety conscious drivers are less likely to be involved in preventable accidents. However, not all drivers have the same amount of experience and attitude toward safety. Furthermore, some experienced drivers who have had accidents and/or violations are worth keeping but, are harder to insure. Rather than excluding such drivers or non-renewing the insureds who hire them, an appropriate driver surcharge is intended to provide the economic incentive to hire and retain the best drivers possible.

I HIRE ONLY GOOD DRIVERS. WHAT CAN EASTERN ATLANTIC DO FOR ME?

Hiring drivers with adequate experience and good driving records will lower or even eliminate your driver surcharge. But, if you have a formal safety program, low driver turnover, good hiring practices, etc., you may qualify for a substantial discount. Ask your agent for details.

If you can’t always hire drivers with the best records, here’s how the driver surcharge works:

HOW IS MY DRIVER SURCHARGE DETERMINED?

An average driver surcharge, based on the previous (36) months experience and driving records of each driver, is used to determine the driver surcharge rate. The driver surcharge rate is applied to the auto liability and physical damage (if applicable) rates to determine the driver surcharge premium.

WHAT CAN I DO TO CONTROL MY DRIVER SURCHARGE?

Avoid hiring drivers with less than two (2) years CDL experience, multiple moving violations (especially excessive speeding tickets), at-fault accidents and, of course, major violations such as DUI, DWI, reckless driving, etc. These will keep your driver surcharge rate as low as possible and could even eliminate it.

Thank you, for insuring with Eastern Atlantic!

If you have any questions, we encourage you to contact your insurance agent.